Some obvious and important lessons in this one. It’s an odd combination of beautiful illustrations and truly wooden amateurish ones. They have the expected effect — the strong ones pull you in; the weak ones distract.

I like the topic this book tackled. It is a really important social issue. However, although a few pages were beautiful, overall, I wasn't a fan of the artwork. In all, this is a fine book that covers the importance of healthy life for minority communities who have been placed in not-so-healthy areas.

Okay, so the story of this one is important. Charisma needed someone to see her as something else than an angry, black teenager. She's passionate, proud and smart - and yes, angry, because of how she's treated. Because she's tired and feels the pressure of life and expectations.

But she gets a teacher who sees her, who sees where the anger comes from. And this is a story about finding your people, your group, leaning towards what you're passionate about, seeing yourself in others.

That said, I didn't like the art and that's really important for me when I'm reading a graphic novel, so some deduction there.

/ Denise

Me encantó. Hubiese querido que el desarrollo fuera más largo. No quería que se acabara. El personaje de Charisma me pareció muy real y sentida, y su progresión pese a ser una historia corta, es muy buena y positiva. Las ilustraciones son muy bonitas y atractivas.

Thank you netgalley for the copy.

I didn’t know what to expect from this book! But reading this book through and I was very pleased with the results. The characters were really good that added the layer of understanding when it comes to colorism. The representation is so vastly important even when it comes to the color of our skin. I wish we wouldn’t have to deal with colorism as we have other issues that affects us all Black people in America. The color illustration was wonderful as it sets the tone of the book throughout! The environmental issues was a great topic. But the overall focus is having that one teacher to help change the course of your path in life!

I can’t wait to get this book for my daughter to read and hope that she will one have a teacher that guides her through!

The problem with assuming that the troubled girl that always gets into trouble is stupid, and not worth working with makes a vicious cycle. In this case Charisma has a rough life, she has to take care of her brother after school. She has trouble controlling her anger, and she is always getting into fights at school.

The one counselor, Ms. Anderson sees Charisma for who she can be, and teaches her how to breathe when she feels angry, and how to talk through problems. Then she helps her get involved in a social justice group that is concerned about how there is more pollution in places where people are poor, or minorities, and she takes this on full force. She also is introduced into reading books by black authors, specifically “The Bluest Eyes” by Tori Morrison that connects with.

I love how she finds her own way, and comes out of her shell, and breaks the cycle of fighting, so that she can move on. Great book for introducing environmental racism.


The book is easy to follow and a quick read. Such a good way to see how someone can get out of their hole, and climb higher for what they believe in.

<em>Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.</em>

This is a story about finding your voice and how having support and someone who believes in you can help you do it. The importance of the community to create changes. I liked the overall message of the story, but I wish it was longer. As for the art style, it can be inconsistent at times, which might be intentional, and the color palette isn't my favorite, but the story was still enjoyable.

I think this graphic novel is perfect for a younger audience like middle grade, not so sure about teens.

This subject is very interessant and necessary. I think it would be make a great addition to a school library to help children get a better understanding about racial injustice. I liked that it also give tools to help deal with strong emotions.
I’ll admit though the art style was not my taste and quite different from the cover. Plus, there were a lot of white squares all over the pages that took me out of it.

Charisma’s turn is a graphic novel that embraces many different themes.
Charisma is a girl with an anger inside herself always ready to explode, so at school she very often ends up in the principal Office or being punished.
His personality is dictated by so many things especially that of being always available for his younger brother suffering from severe asthma attacks.
One day after yet another quarrel she is given a chance, an teacher sees her not as someone who cannot change but rather as a girl who can become much more if only she found the right thing to fight for.
It was very smooth, the style of drawing is not very much my kind but I appreciated it, I would have liked to see the emotion of the protagonist even more, sometimes it seems that everything goes too fast.